About a 6-1/2 hour drive away from here is a city called Beacon, NY. The similarities to Butler are remarkable, and our planners and residents could learn a lot from their extremely successful renaissance. Unfortunately, the approach (or lack thereof) that Butler is taking does not at all resemble Beacon, so let us stop, look, listen and learn.

Beacon sits a couple counties above New York City between the Hudson River and a mountain. This city was a bona fide dump as little as ten years ago, having suffered a long term decline as a former manufacturing district. Main Street buildings were boarded up, drugs and crime were rampant, productive citizens were moving out and freeloading troublemakers were moving in. But the people who cared and had some vision and courage put their heads together, set their differences aside, and came up with a plan of action that overhauled the city and made it one of the most desirable places to live in the whole region.

In summary, Beacon pulled itself out of the doldrums in back into the limelight by adhering to certain basic values:

1) They revered and protected their historic buildings, including residential, especially their prized especially Victorian housing stock (think of the beautiful homes that have been or will be destroyed on Butler's Main St. by Nationwide and Armstrong, and the commercial structures now eyed by Rite-Aid, a failing drug store chain)

2) They go to lengths to protect their trees, reveling in their status as a "Tree City USA"

3) They defend the natural beauty and open space

4) They have an active, concerned citizenry who vote in elections and whose voices are heard at council meetings

5) They have a great mayor who is deeply committed to their city; he replaces one who held office for 18 years by being moderate, accountable, and a true public servant

6) They rooted out corruption in their police force and employed canines, both of which served to tamp down the drug problem

7) The opening of new businesses on Main St provided employment and legal places to congregate for many youths that might have otherwise gotten into trouble

The people of Beacon understood the importance of things like natural beauty, 19th century buildings, open space, and other aesthetic attractions like art galleries, antique stores, and coffee shops - they bring in the kind of folks who have some education, work, make and spend money, take care of their houses, and raise their children to be good citizens. Over and over again, we see that the most desired aspects of are connections to nature and to history. Butler should keep this in mind before destroying more mature trees and old-fashioned buildings.

Take a look below and see how Beacon did it:

A link to the city's web site, summarizing how they went from a downtrodden blight to a New York Times feature:

http://cityofbeacon.org/Tour/TourBeaconsRenaissance.htm

A post by a former city council member who chaired the long-term planning - note the level of detail and the kinds of things they found important:

http://www.beacondispatch.com/?p=100#